Police at Natete Police station last evening registered and responded to a fire outbreak, which happened at about 10 pm.
The incident involved a Motor Vehicle Reg. No UBD 269A Scania belonging to Link Bus Services that was returning from Kasese to Kampala. The bus burst in flames at Wakaliga traffic lights.
Luke Owoyesigyire, the Deputy Kampala Metropolitan Police spokesperson said, “Our fire prevention and rescue services officers responded on time, fortunately, the fire had been extinguished by other first responders using a nearby fire extinguisher, water, and sand.”
According to Owoyesigyire, all passengers escaped unhurt. He further explained that preliminary police investigations attribute the fire to a short circuit in one of the headlamps.
According to Owoyesigyire, the fire prevention and rescue services noted that the bus had no fire extinguisher of its own.
“Our officers from the fire prevention and rescue services have noted that the bus had no fire extinguisher of its own. We advise all bus operators to have the fire extinguishers in place in case of a fire emergency,” Owoyesigyire noted.
The incident comes days after the government lifted the suspension of the activities of Link Buses. About two weeks ago, the Ministry of Works halted the operations of Link buses following a lone accident that claimed lives of more than 20 people and left several others injured.
The bus overturned at Ssebitoli, two kilometers from Fort Portal city along the Fort Portal-Kyenjonjo road. While lifting the suspension, the Minister of Works and Transport, Gen. Edward Katumba Wamala said that they had fully inspected the buses and found them fit to resume their operations.
The 2021 crime report by the Directorate of Fire and Rescue services indicates that 1,258 fire incidents were registered compared to 1,013 fires recorded in 2020. Police attributed 272 incidents to negligence and another 186 to short-circuiting.